Lucy Powell bio

Lucy is the Labour and Cooperative Member of Parliament for Manchester Central and, since September 2015, Shadow Secretary of State for Education. Born in Manchester, she attended a local comprehensive and sixth form college before going on to read Chemistry at university.

Before becoming an MP, Lucy worked for NESTA (National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts), during which time she helped to establish and manage the Innovation Fund project at the University of Manchester. In 2010, Lucy began working for Ed Miliband, managing his leadership selection campaign, before becoming his Deputy Chief of Staff until 2012.

Lucy became the first female Labour MP to represent a Manchester constituency when she was elected during a by-election in November 2012. She first served in the shadow education team as Shadow Minister for Children and Childcare in October 2013, a post she held until November 2014, when she took on the role of Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office and Vice Chair of Labour's 2015 General Election campaign in charge of day-to-day operations.

She was appointed Shadow Secretary of State for Education in September 2015. Coming from a family of teachers, and as a parent herself, Lucy is passionate about education and believes strongly in the importance of reducing inequality, raising aspirations and creating a productive economy by giving every child the best possible start in life.

Lucy currently lives in Manchester with her husband, James, and their three children, who are each attending local schools at nursery, primary and secondary levels.